One of the first things to do if you want to go sailing is hoist the main. You’ve probably never really followed a procedure unless a previous skipper has given you one and you’ve probably achieved it. There are many ways to do this but this is the procedure I like the most and it works no matter the boat’s setup as long as it isn’t a furling main sail. To give you an idea, it is the one they teach for the Clipper Round the World Race.
3 Easy Steps
The procedure is basically 3 easy steps done twice. The best way to remember it is to use the acronym VMT. The “V” stands for vang, the “M” stands for main sheet and the “T” stands for topping lift.
As most modern boats now have stack packs and lazy jacks, it is important to take those in consideration. You can either tighten and loosen your lazy jacks every time you hoist or drop your sail or find that sweet spot on the topping lift where you never even need to play with it if you also have a vang and not a kicker. Read here to learn the difference if you don’t already know.
Hoisting the Main Sail
The first thing we will do, after placing the boat in irons, is open the clutch or jammer on the vang. This is one of the main factors allowing for us to raise the boom.
The next step is to have one person “Goldilocks” the main sheet. I call it this way because the same way Goldilocks needed just the right temperature porridge, we need to keep the main sheet with a little bit of pressure on it but let it out to keep the sail into the wind. This is done because no matter how good the helmsman may be, the boat might be a couple of degrees off and it ensures that the sail doesn’t get caught in the lazy jacks or that it powers up.
The last step is to raise the boom by pulling in on the topping lift. Once this is done, a little bit of strength will get that main up without any issue.
And After?
Once the sail is hoisted and tensioned to your liking, it is now time to get the boat sailing!
We now do the exact opposite! We release the topping lift, come in on the main for the wind angle we are on (you can always have a look here) and then tighten up on the vang.